Thursday, September 06, 2012

SAN DIEGO, CA (September 7, 2012) - Father John
Trigilio, Jr., President of the Confraternity of Catholic Clergy (a national
association of more than 500 priests and deacons), publicly repudiates the
Austrian Priests’ Initiative, “Call to Disobedience.” Recently, Msgr. Helmut
Schüller gave an interview to CNS (Catholic News Service) where he reiterated
his group’s dissident agenda: making clerical
celibacy optional, allowing Protestants and divorced and remarried (without
annulment) Catholics to receive Holy Communion, accepting same-sex unions, and
ordaining women to Holy Orders. The CCC, on the other hand, “unequivocally
and completely renews the sacred promise of obedience taken by every cleric. Orthodoxy
(assenting to all Magisterial teachings) and orthopraxy (obeying the
lawful disciplines of church authority) are indispensable and
inseparable to ordained ministry.”

The Confraternity of Catholic Clergy in the U.S.A. (www.catholic-clergy.org)
has fellow associations in Australia (ACCC) and the UK (British CCC)
with more than 300 and 100 members, respectively. All three branches espouse
fidelity to the Roman Pontiff and to the full deposit of faith as taught by the
Pope and Bishops in union with him. “It is incomprehensible how the Austrian
Priests’ Initiative can blame Rome for their dissent. Such an act of rebellion
against church doctrine is nothing less than heretical and rebellion against church discipline
is just plain schismatic.”

Thomas McKenna, Executive Director of the
Confraternity said, “The Catholic faithful need to know that these
miscreants are not by any means representative of the majority of clergy. Most
priests and deacons are faithful sons of the Church but they do not get the
same publicity and attention the secular media lavishes upon the vocal minority
of dissidents.” Father Trigilio is asking all members of the CCC to renew
the Oath of Fidelity every Thursday (in honor of the Last
Supper when Holy Orders was instituted by Christ) during the upcoming YEAR OF
FAITH (Oct. 11, 2012-Nov. 24, 2013) to show solidarity with the Holy Father and
the Magisterium of the Roman Catholic Church

Wednesday, September 05, 2012

The late Governor Bob Casey of Pennsylvania was a staunch Catholic AND a staunch PRO-LIFE Democrat. He was denied speaking time at the 1992 DNC because he wanted to add a Pro-Life plank into the party platform.

Casey was the role model of Catholic Democrats. He was loyal to the party but faithful to his beliefs FIRST. He put God before politics. He realized the best patriot is a person of good morals.

It is admirable that many Catholics are politically involved. Responsible citizenship is not an option but a duty everyone has. We are morally bound to vote in elections since we live in a democratic-republic where there is a representative government. It is also a serious responsibility and obligation to vote INTELLIGENTLY and CONSCIENTIOUSLY. The only way for evil to succeed is for good people to allow it to happen by doing nothing. Apathy is the Devil's greatest ally. That is why it behooves all citizens to know where the candidates stand on important issues and to vote with a WELL FORMED CONSCIENCE. That means using the Natural Moral Law, Sacred Scripture, Sacred Tradition and the teachings of the Magisterium to make INFORMED decisions. Candidates, political parties and their platforms must be judged by their WORDS and DEEDS.

No party has a monopoly on truth or goodness. Whether someone is a registered Democrat, Republican, Independent, Libertarian, et al., what matters is that they EXPRESS themselves not just on election day but before and after national conventions, when legislation is pending and during the election process, especially during primaries.

There are many Catholics registered in both major parties (Democrat and Republican) as well as other ones. American Express' famous commercial has a slogan: Membership has its privileges. Well, Responsible Citizenship can say: MEMBERSHIP HAS ITS OBLIGATIONS. No matter what political party a Catholic registers, he or she has a moral obligation to express their concerns and if necessary voice opposition when candidates or platforms espouse policies that conflict with what is morally permissible. Catholic Republicans cannot just presume that the Pro-Life plank in the platform will be automatically and de facto enforced and adhered to across the board. They must be VIGILANT that abortion and euthanasia are not made 'fuzzy' for the sake of economics or other concerns. Observe and evaluate politicians, candidates, parties and platforms and call them to task if and when they turn their back on those promises made to defend life, the family and traditional marriage.

Likewise, Catholic Democrats NEED to be HEARD. Don't let the Pro-Abortion wing dominate and control your party. SPEAK UP and SPEAK OUT. Make a difference and exert influence OR get out and switch. Just as Republicans cannot presume or take for granted the official planks in the platform, similarly, Democrats should not blindly accept and allow others to shove down their throats planks and policies that contradict moral values and principles held sacred by many. Blind participation can go both ways. Some are apathetic and do not know or care what their party, platform or candidates espouse. Others are mindless lemmings who go along with the crowd even if the crowd is jumping off a cliff.

PLEASE, take responsible citizenship seriously. PRAY and STUDY to make an intelligent decision to your VOTE and your political affiliation (party membership). Get INVOLVED by communicating your thoughts and concerns to candidates and party bosses. WARN them that you are not a DE FACTO lifelong member. CAUTION them that you and others can and will leave and join another party if your voice is not heard and given respect and consideration. Voting is one element of responsible citizenship. Being INFORMED and getting INVOLVED are the flip side of the same coin. If more responsible Catholic voters took their conscience not only into the voting booth but also to the national conventions, politicians may not be tempted to take our votes for granted. It is a sin of omission to remain silent and say and do nothing when moral issues are at stake in the public arena of government. Ironically, special interest groups which represent a minority of the population usually get more of their agenda heard and accommodated because they use their voice. If the majority of moral people who live by an ethical and religious code of behavior took their values and principles seriously, they would have more influence than the special interest groups. Politics is only worth doing if done well. Done well is measured by the degree of common good achieved, not terms of office.

The RIGHT TO LIFE is the first and foremost of all our God given and inalienable rights as human beings. The Constitution does not give us these rights, it recognizes and protects them. Human life, especially innocent human life, must be protected at all times and at all cost, otherwise, a culture and civilization are doomed.

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[close]Firefox users we wanted to take this space to let you know what Mozilla, the company that makes Firefox has been doing, and it's not good. Mozilla recently forced it's CEO to resign because he had, 5 years ago, donated $1,000 to a pro-family political group. Apparently Mozilla is intolerant of anyone that disagrees with their Liberal view of politics. To read more please visit WhyFirefoxIsBlocked.com. (We aren't blocking Firefox, but we feel it is important to let you know what's going on.)